Thread: 'la Veinette' Coticule/BBW

Saw this on eBay today. An obvious BBW cutting from 'la Veinette,' but what do you guys think the chances are of there being any usable Coticule on the other side of the rock? Seller states that the rock doesn't want to come out of the case.

It’s not a bad sized BBW, but it is difficult to tell how much of the coticule portion is on the flip side in the box. Seems odd that if there is a good size coti under there that someone would have glued it on the bootom of the box where you can’t easily get to it for honing. If it is really nastily glued into the box, you could lose much of the coticule that is there by prying it out.

Yeah, judging by the visible cut, and the vein, it looks like 1/3 of the other surface is Coticule. But if it was cut from the bottom of the vein, the whole top could be. Might be worth it to sand the box off of the stone and look, but if it's glued in, it was probably glued in for a reason. If I didn't already have a BBW, I'd toss them an offer. Might do it anyways, as the BBW from la Veinette is unusually fine grained, compared to other veins.

I would have to agree.
If it was even a thin sliver of Cotie across the glued side I can't see them gluing it. I've seen some coties that were very thin layers on a BBW and still sold as Cotie.

If the price is right and it doesn't hurt your pocketbook if its not a good stone then go for it and let us know how it turned out. I've sanded away a couple of old boxes and glue from old stones. Nornammy you lose a little stone. But if you were planning on Flattening it anyway, you are one step ahead.

Originally Posted by Gasman

I would have to agree.
If it was even a thin sliver of Cotie across the glued side I can't see them gluing it. I've seen some coties that were very thin layers on a BBW and still sold as Cotie.

If the price is right and it doesn't hurt your pocketbook if its not a good stone then go for it and let us know how it turned out. I've sanded away a couple of old boxes and glue from old stones. Nornammy you lose a little stone. But if you were planning on Flattening it anyway, you are one step ahead.

It's on the high side for that small of a stone, especially if it's only BBW. On the other hand, they never sold BBW with chunks of Coticule like that, so there's a good chance there's a lot of yellow rock in the bottom of that box. I sent an offer at about half what they were asking. We'll see what happens.

Sometimes the BBW is a great hone. There are those that claim the BBW side is faster and produces a better edge than the coti side. I would work hard at cleaning and testing the BBW side before putting too much effort into getting it out of the box. It’s not uncommon though that a build up of old dried slurry is what holds them in the box.

I offered $40 to see if they would kick back a counter offer. They just rejected the offer, and didn't add a counter offer. They want $20 shipping too, for something that will fit in a small flat rate box.

Originally Posted by RezDog

Sometimes the BBW is a great hone. There are those that claim the BBW side is faster and produces a better edge than the coti side. I would work hard at cleaning and testing the BBW side before putting too much effort into getting it out of the box. It’s not uncommon though that a build up of old dried slurry is what holds them in the box.

Yeah. Like I posted earlier in the thread, I have a BBW/Coticule combo from the same vein, and the BBW side is exceptionally fine grained, compared to my just plain BBW. If I wasn't laid off and having to watch my spending, I'd send them a realistically good offer, even if it meant I basically wound up with a duplicate stone for something I already have.

Ah well. Headed into town to take a look at my buddy's collection of rock chunks. I'll see if he'll let me take pics. He's been a vintage wood working tool collector for 50 years. Ever see hones in wood cases with ivory inlay? That's the kind of stuff he has.

...and he was out steelhead salmon fishing.

Can't blame him for that, nothing better than a day of hooters.